Judgment of Compliance

Narrative

Sam Houston State University is governed by The Texas State University System’s Board of Regents. The policies addressing conflict of interest for the Board of Regents are noted in The Texas State University System Rules and Regulations.

Sam Houston State University is a member of The Texas State University System as specified in the Texas Statues Education Code, Chapter 96.61: “Sam Houston State University is a coeducational institution of higher education located in the city of Huntsville. It is under the management and control of the Board of Regents, Texas State University System” [1]. The policy addressing conflict of interest for its board members is located in The Texas State University System Rules and Regulations, Chapter VIII, Section 2 entitled Conflicts of Interest. This policy states “…neither the System nor a component thereof may enter into a contract in which a Regent or the Regent’s spouse has a direct or indirect pecuniary interest.” In addition, this policy goes on to state “a Regent who has a personal or private financial interest in a measure, proposal, or decision pending before the Board ... shall disclose such interest in a public meeting of the Board, and such disclosure shall be entered in the minutes of the Board. The Board may consider such measure, proposal, or decision, but any Regent having such an interest shall not vote or otherwise participate in such deliberation or action of the Board.” This policy also covers the aspect of the Regent as a stockholder when it states, “If a Regent is a stockholder or director of a corporation seeking to enter into a contract with the System or a component thereof, but owns or has a beneficial interest in no more than five percent of the corporation's outstanding capital stock, the contract may be executed so long as it is an affiliation agreement, license (including a license of intellectual property), or sponsored research agreement, or it is awarded by competitive bidding or competitive sealed proposals…the affected Regent must disclose such interest in a public meeting of the Board of Regents and shall not vote on the contract or transaction.” To further validate there is no conflict of interest for board members, this policy requires, “Each Regent, the Chancellor and the presidents of the components shall file a financial statement with the Texas Ethics Commission not later than April 30, each year. . .” [2].

Supporting Documentation